The Legend of the Crystal Kingdom
by Oblivion-Time
Summary: Summary: "He is a killer! Don't you see what danger you put us in by inviting him! He is the Soul Eater!" Armour of pure crystal and a sword made of compacted crystals. He's Soul Eater, the infamous killing machine. You come in his way, and he will take your life.
1. Part 1

Summary: "He is a _killer!_ Don't you see what danger you put us in by inviting _him?!_ He is _the Soul Eater!"_

"Why did you choose this life? Why in the world would you want to kill people?"

"Why?" He asked. "Because I have this ability to protect myself. I'm blessed with this power to strike those who rise against me dead. I can get back at those who anger me and I can do everything those people did to hurt me. I can get my revenge on everybody in this cursed world."

Armour of pure crystal and a sword made of compacted crystals. He's Soul Eater, the infamous killing machine. You come in his way, and he will take your life.

**The Legend of the Crystal Kingdom Part 1**

The young boy peered at the creature on the opposite side of the bush. His ruby eyes peeked from the leaves, his eyes focused on the stray cat cleaning its dark blue fur. A smirk slowly grew on his face, exposing his razor sharp teeth. He raised his hand, ready to bounce on his prey. His fingers tingled and they froze, a sharp light blue crystal spire pierced up from the grass. The cat had barely time to hiss, not any time to dodge, and the crystal spire goes through the cat's stomach, leaving the cat to mewl in pain as death slowly crawled closer. With another hand motion of his hand, another spire shot up from the ground and stops the cat from ever inhaling another breath.

"Oh, your shoulders are very tense, Sir Eater." The masseur whose name was Chrona dug his fingers into Soul's shoulders. "My, I see now why you asked for an emergency massage."

Soul Eater only grunted in answer, moving his muscles in discomfort when his fingers dig into a muscle knot. He flipped his head to the other side on his arms, looking out on the area of the hot spring. The sound of the small waterfall gently fell into the hot spring. Other guests strolled down the sand with white towels around their bodies.

His eyes then settled on a woman on the opposite side of the room. She lie on a massage table, a female masseur rubbed her back. His eyes followed the smooth oiled skin of hers from the oil the masseurs used. The creamy skin of hers and the blond hair poured on the side of her head. His eyes settled on the blissful face of hers. The small curved smile on her rosy lips and her eyes closed with pleasure.

He couldn't look away. The beautiful creature before him was enchanting. Her porcelain pale skin and the softness of her made his fingers tingled with longing for his fingers to run over her bare skin. For him to feel her golden strands of hair running in between his fingers. His eyes settled on her closed eyelids, her long rich black lashes caressing her skin. He wanted to find out what color her eyes were. Were they perhaps a perfect sky-blue? It would be fit for a human with such flawless beauty. Or maybe her eyes were a deep brown, with mystery and depths lie in them.

She certainly was a mystery and he'd gotten himself in a few altercations because of his curiosity when he was a little boy.

"Who is that?" He said to Chrona, pointing his finger toward her. "Her, the one being massaged."

Chrona's hands stopped on his back for a second before they continued working on his muscle knots. "That is the queen of Albarn Kingdom." He spoke.

A queen? If she was a queen, then where were her guards? Soul had seen quite a few royalties in his days, most of them ended up dead at his hands, and all of them had an army of guards with them. This one, how come she didn't have any?

His eyes darted to the ceiling and around the area in search of any suspicious people who appeared to have their eyes on her, but he found none of such characters. Not a single one.

"If she is a queen, then where is her guards?" He asked.

"Why? Because she doesn't need any."

"Doesn't need any?" His voice rose in shock. Every queen needed guards, guards protecting the royalty from people like him. He could easily sweep in and slice her head off and no one would be able to stop him.

"Correct. She does not have any enemies. She is a very liked and precious queen for us. There is not a single one who would want to harm a hair on her head."

"Is that so?" He murmured. No one could be liked and loved by _everyone._ There must be at least one who hated the queen with a passion.

Soul twisted his tongue in his mouth, rolling it around in his mouth to feel how that statement tasted. He did not like the statement at all.

His eyes suddenly widened only a little when the masseur removed her hands from her back and covered her back up with the white cloth. The queen smiled brightly and got up from the table with her long cloth fisted in her hand as it poured around her ankles.

Emerald. Her eyes were emeralds, glistering like the brightest and most precious summer days. The perfect color of green apples and grass, two of the things he is very familiar with and likes very much.

She smiled gently toward the masseur before she heads toward the hot spring.

He barely has time to register what he was doing before he sat up on the table and wrapped the cloth around his waist.

"W-wait! I'm not done!" Chrona exclaimed after Soul as he quickly made a spin in the sand.

"You did enough. I'm fine." He turned again and went toward the hot spring where he saw the beautiful queen descend into the water with the long cloth tightly wrapped around her body.

Instantly, he stopped with his foot in the midair.

What was he doing? What would he expect the queen to do to him? With the abnormal white hair of his and eyes as red as the blood of his victims and sharp shark teeth. Nothing good comes out of having looks like his.

His whole life was all about rejection. His parents rejected him when he was a child, he doesn't even remember their faces or their names. Every person who walked by him accused him of being the spawn of Satan and a demon. There was never anyone who showed him kindness or even a nice gesture toward him.

He was never wanted. And he showed one by one what would happen when you messed with Soul Eater.

He wasn't going to waste his time on a queen.

He turned around and fisted the material around his hips.

"Excuse me! Sir!" A high feminine voice called out. For him? Perhaps.

Slowly he turned around and he found the queen's eyes settled on him. Her emerald eyes sent a shiver down his spine and he didn't know why.

"What?" He grunted hostility.

"Pardon me, but it looked like you were heading to the hot springs." Her voice was of an angel. High and smooth as silk and sweet as sugar. Was she really talking to _him?_

"What if I was. What business is it to you?" His eyes narrowed at the woman and he made sure his sharp teeth peeked out from between his lips.

"I do not wish to bathe alone. You are more than welcome to join me Sir…?"

Silence. He watched her expression. Her eyebrows weren't narrowed and her lips weren't crooked with disgust, neither did her eyes give off any negative intentions. She smiled gently toward him, resting her arms on the beautifully laid stones on the edge of the hot spring.

She was… intriguing. Her looks definitely reeled him in and made him take a step toward her.

"Soul Eater. That is my name." He was sure she had heard his name before. He was infamous of his ruthless murders. Everybody knew not to mess with him or their body would walk around without a head.

She didn't react to his name. Her smile didn't waver and the sparkle in her eyes didn't disappear and was replaced with fear. How could she keep smiling toward him? How come she didn't look at him with fear and disgust? It irked him.

"Soul Eater you say," The queen spoke softly as Soul stepped down and let the hot water envelope his legs and stomach, "why the name?"

"It's none of your business!" He snarled and bared his teeth at her.

She did not flinch. Her smile still crossed over her face and the friendly spark in her eyes was still there as the sun is in the sky. How could she not flinch? How come she didn't despise him and cursed him to the seventh level of hell? How could she _smile_ toward him?

"I apologize then. I have not seen you in the Albarn Kingdom before. May I ask where you are from?"

"I said it's none―" He stopped. He stared at her smiling face as his fists slowly clenched. He dreamt of a moment like this one. A moment when a friendly person would finally approach him and finally offer him a kind gesture. This was _the moment_ and he was screwing it up by being hostile. "I don't know." He muttered, slowly relaxing his knuckles. "I have no clue where I was born."

"How tragic." Her smile slowly faded and sorrow joined. He wished to see her smiling again. He didn't like the tragic turn of her face. "Didn't your parents ever tell you?"

"No." The conversation took a turn he did not like to converse about, not that anyone asked about his parents or his life. The only words they said to him was pleas to spare them, which he never granted. "You are a queen. Why are you here all alone? You never know who might jump out and seize the moment to get blue blood on their hands."

"Would you?"

Yes! No! "You never know." Fitting answer.

"I do not like having guards with me." She sank deeper into the water and let the water rise to her neck. "There is no reason for me to have guards. Violence is wrong and I do not encourage it by having men with swords with me." Her eyes slowly fluttered shut, enjoying the steaming water around her. "I only brought one guard in order to keep the king happy and he is most likely enjoying himself in a sauna."

"So, he does not fear for your safety?" Soul asked, peering at her face. The perfect curve of her cheekbones and her perfect pale skin, except for the light rosy cheeks of hers. Perfection. That was the only word worthy for her.

"No, never has there been a single one to threaten me with a sword. I do not want the castle to be guarded at all, but the king, Death the Kid, insists on keeping them. Saying anyone could storm the castle and harm us, which I believe would never happen."

"Never happen, huh?" A sinister smirk stretched and completely exposed his sharp teeth. The Eater inside of him felt like playing.

The queen must have heard the ominous reek from him since she opened her eyes and straightened her back.

He smirked wide at her and under the water at the sand floor of the hot spring, a sharp crystal shot up and pierced the surface, directed toward the queen. "How about now? The zero is broken."

To his astonishment, she didn't flinch away from the tip of the crystal that was only inches away from her left eye. "It is tragic." Her hand arose from the water and her fingers caressed the see-through crystal. "How something so beautiful could be used as a weapon."

His eyes widened. That was not the answer he'd expected. He wanted her to scream with fear and run out of the hot spring and cursing him to the seventh level of hell like everybody else.

"What?" He simply grunted. For the first time, he had to fight to keep up his hostile front.

"It is so beautiful. I have heard about your crystals before. It is the most tragic I have ever seen." Her hand ran up the crystal and toward the tip. "Such beauty, such an incredible ability used for such a horrible purpose. Even the crystals are weeping."

"What? They are not _weeping!_" He raised his voice and his face trembled from fatigue of _having_ to keep an aggressive and dangerous facade. He had never before in his life had to force out anger, he had plenty from his past and with this girl, he was taken back. How could she confuse him so?

"Yes they are." Her finger came dangerously close to the tip of the crystal and he is ready to pull out his wildcard. "They are― Ouch!" He sharpened the edge and prickled her finger, successfully drawing her blood.

In his past, it wasn't a new thing for him to hurt royalty. He had taken on jobs from royalties and other nobles to assassinate their enemies, he knew the kings and queens had blue blood, and that was the same color that trickled down her finger. A perfect deep blue.

"Do you hate me now?" He whispered and allowed himself to relax and drop the anger from his face, exchanging it with a blank and emotionless facade. "I threaten your life and I hurt you." He wanted her to hate him. He did not need anyone's pity or care. He was a big boy who knew how to take care of himself. At the same time, he longed for her. Those large eyes, her perfect pale skin, he wanted her to look at him with those large eyes of hers and touch him. He longed for a kind gesture and now when he got it, he was insecure and hostile. He didn't know how to handle it.

She shook her head as she put her wounded finger in her mouth, cleaning her finger. "No. I could not hate you."

And he broke. Just like that. The hard facade was broken and he didn't know what to do with himself. He was _the Soul Eater!_ One woman had managed to crumble the great Eater with just a few sentences. He did not like the sound of that.

"Why? It doesn't make sense." The crystal crumbled and fell into the water, sinking to the floor of the hot spring before they became dust. "I threaten you, hurt you and curse you. Why can't you hate me?"

She pulled out her finger out of her mouth and scooted closer to him slowly. "Because of your eyes."

"My eyes?" He asked quizzically.

"Yeah." She was close. Very close. Her knee touched his and he got a better look at her. She was even more perfect up close. Utterly perfection. Perfectly pale skin, rich lips he found very desirable, collarbones which almost broke her fragile skin and her eyes. Her large eyes. A perfect grassy green and thick rows of pitch black lashes. He was sure she was a saint. There was no other explanation.

She raised her hand and cautiously reached for his cheek, not because she feared him, but to prepare him for the touch. Her fingers made contact with his cheek and soon her palm joined in, gently cupping his rough cheek. Her hand was even smoother and tinier than he'd pictured it. He even feared she would cut her hand on his ragged cheek. "I have never seen so much pain in anyone's eyes like in yours. You're trying to hold up such a dangerous front but I can see you are only defensive because you are hurting."

It was true. He knew she was more than right. She had hit the nail on the head.

"No one deserves to bear so much pain like you are." Her words were like honey as her eyes pierced him. She was hypnotizing him. He knew he should get away from her, probably drive a crystal through her abandonment for daring to touch him, but he did not have the heart to hurt her. He clenched his fists tightly. He is _Soul Eater,_ he _should_ hurt her. He _should_ kill her to then kill every person inside of the building. She had slowly removed layer after layer of his being and he was too exposed to his liking. Never in his life had he been so bare, so vulnerable to _anyone._

"You have no idea what you are talking about." He muttered, not making a move to remove himself from her.

"Maybe, but I do know you are bearing a huge burden for a man. You are hurting like no one else and you do not deserve it."

"And business is it to you?" He questioned her, looking straight into her eyes.

A small smile played on her face. Her thumb caressed his cheekbone and she leaned closer. "Let me offer you a meal. Come to the castle tomorrow. Go to the royal gate and give them your name, they will send you inside." She stood up and her hand was the last one to leave him. "I will be expecting you." Her eyes lingered on him before she got up from the hot spring and walked away.

He could not remove his eyes from her as he watched the white cloth drag behind her in the sand. The soft touch of her hand on his cheek still lingered and his heart was going haywire.

What in the world had she done to him?

He was pissed. An hour after she had left and he was back in his crystal armor, he was raging. His crystal sword quickly sliced through a tree and it came crashing down.

How could he have lowered his guard like that for someone like her? What had she _done_ to him? He could only think of her fragile smooth hand on his rough cheek and her perfectly green eyes staring into his heart, seeing through him like his crystals.

She had wiggled her way inside of him and he hated it. He hated how all he could think about was her green eyes and those perfectly rosy lips of hers. What would they taste like? Like green apples like the color of her eyes or maybe milk like her creamy pale skin?

He growled loudly and stabbed his ragged dark blue crystal sword into the trunk of a thick tree, barks and splinters soared through the air. His breathe was quick and labor, his eyebrows narrowed like never before and his eyes could set the forest on fire. He was oozing anger as he withdrew the sword from the tree trunk. His eyes wandered to a new tree and slowly an image of the queen standing in her white cloth took over the trunk.

He hissed and cried out angrily as he swung his sword toward the queen.

His sword never made contact. The tip hovered right in front of the bark of the tree.

He decided to go to the castle and see the queen. He had not learned her name and quite frankly, he _wanted_ to see her. Who knows, maybe he could sell her head to one of the underground criminals. A blue blood queen with a precious face as hers he could get a house for.

He entered the Albarn Kingdom and he wasn't surprised with the condition of the Kingdom. Houses were broken and villagers were dressed in rags. The standards weren't much better than in the other kingdoms.

The villagers gasped loudly and the mothers clung to their children as he walked by. Word of him had definitely reached this kingdom of his murderous ways. It isn't hard to miss whole-body crystal armor. There was no other armor like his and if there was, he would kill the bastard for wearing a similar armor. There was only one Soul Eater and that is how he wanted to keep it.

The proud stone-castle stood tall and steel fence framed the whole castle from any intruders like him. At the gate to the royal castle stood two guards and as soon as they set their eyes on him, they gripped their spires and readied for a fight.

"Stay where you are!" A male with blue hair hollered at him as he pointed the sharp end of the golden spire at him.

He doesn't stop. "My name is Soul Eater. I have been invited by the queen." He has his sword fastened on his hip and if they are planning on standing against him, he is more than ready to draw blood.

The other guard with black hair straightened his back and rested the end of his spire on the ground. "You may pass." He spoke but the other guard had other plans.

"You may _not _pass!" He hissed loudly. "A murderer is not welcome inside of the queen's castle!"

A fight is going to take place. Soul can only smirk wide and the gap of his crystal helmet expose his sharp teeth. He came closer and closer to the gate and to the man and his hand found the handle of his sword, the thin layer of crystal holding his sword to his hip breaks.

"You know the orders. The queen ordered us to let Soul Eater through. We can't disobey her orders." The guard with black hair said.

"Would you rather get her killed? If disobeying the queen's orders means keeping her majesty safe, I will disobey them without hesitating." His blue eyebrows narrowed and his eyes focused on Soul. "I will fight you and die if that means keeping the queen safe!"

For the first time, he stopped. He raised his crystal sword and spread his legs, ready for a fight. "Bring it on."

The blue haired guard growled and he leaped.

"Stop!"

Immediately the guard stilled and turned around, dropping down to his one knee. "My queen."

Soul looked behind the fence and saw the approaching queen, this time, she was not dressed in a simple long white cloth, now she wore a luxurious green dress with golden details.

"Black*Star, I told you to let him inside, not start a fight." The queen said and opened the gate.

"My apology, my queen, but I do not think it is a good idea to invite an infamous murderer inside of the castle. You might put yourself in danger." The guard now known as Black*Star said with his head bowed.

"You have nothing to worry about, Black*Star. If I need you, I will call for you." The queen spoke and smiled at Soul. "I was starting to think you would not come."

Soul darted his eyes at the guard Black*Star. No danger. He put the sword back at his hip and crystal grew from his armor and successfully fastened it on his side. "And miss the chance to eat food fit for royalty, I don't think so." He walked passed the guard and walked pass the queen.

"I'm still glad you came." She closed the gate behind her and walked beside the warrior. "The food is already served. You came just in time."

"Cool." He didn't know what to say to her. He was still very confused about the whole thing. Did he hate her or not? He did want to strangle her and touch her face with his hands. What in the world was it that made him this confused over a single person?

"Would you like a house tour after dinner? I could show you the castle's spa if you would like." The queen offered, fiddling with the wedding ring on her finger.

"If you had a spa in your castle why on earth would you travel out of your kingdom to go to a hot spring?" He regretted the words immediately. That was a first for him. He usually never regretted saying nasty things.

"It is all about freedom." She said softly, totally ignoring the rudeness he spoke to her. "I do not want to be a queen caged inside of her castle. The king may take care of most of the political work for our kingdom, but I like to get out of the castle and help the villagers." She moved with such grace. Even the way she entwined her hands behind her back made his heart skip a beat. "Call it silly, but I have always dreamt of a world without violence and poverty. I have always dreamt of dissolving the guards and bring the castle and villagers closer. I enjoy helping my people and strolling through my kingdom. I enjoy feeling free and meeting new people. It is exciting and it feels like I am coming closer to my dream for every person and every smile I see."

"That is an impossible dream." They entered the castle together and the queen led him through the stone hallways. "There will always be evil in this world. There will always be those who kill and poison the world. People like me."

"No." She shook her head. "You are not poison. You can't ever be toxic." Her hand ran over the crystal armor of his, her fingers touched the back of his hand. Oh how he wished he did not wear his armor so he could feel her touch on his skin. "Poison hurts everyone. Poison can't be turned to good. But you can."

His heart skipped a beat.

This woman. This queen. She held such an innocent dream, a dream as impossible as catching stars. And her perspective of him, so full of hope and faith in him. He had no hope. His whole life had he killed people. He was poison to the world, but she looked pass all of that and saw the little that _might_ be decent.

What in the world was she _doing_ to him?

They reached the dining hall and the queen immediately retrieved her hand from his. By the table sat a man with black hair with a golden crown on his head. The king. As soon as his golden eyes settled on him, they widen and he shot up from the chair.

"The Eater!" The chair hit the ground and the king pointed at Soul. "Maka what were you thinking with inviting a _serial killer_ to our table!"

Maka. That is a beautiful name fit for a queen in his mind.

"Calm down Kid." Maka softly spoke, not raising her voice. "He is a human being just like everybody else."

"He is a _killer!_ Don't you see what danger you put us in by inviting _him?!_ He is _the Soul Eater!"_ The king growl loudly and slapped his hands on the mahogany table. "I went along with the beggars, I went along with the homeless, I went along with the alcoholics, but this is where I put my foot down. I will _not_ tolerate a _murderer_ by our table!"

"You do not need to raise your voice." The queen spoke so tender just like honey. "I will not send him away. I have already promised him a meal and a meal he will get. If you not wish to be in his presence then you can leave."

The queen grabbed his hand and slowly led him to the long table decorated with turkey, pig, apples, bread, chicken and all sorts of vegetables neatly cut and decorated. The king stared at him as the queen released his hand by an empty chair.

"Please, take a seat. I asked the chefs to prepare every kind of food since I did not know what you liked." The queen― Maka took a seat beside Soul and gently met his eyes with elegance. "Dig in."

Soul looked at the wide varieties of knives, forks and spoons. Every silverware looked almost the same but with the smallest of changes for each and every one of them. He glanced over toward Maka and watched her with fines as she ate a piece of an apple with a tiny fork and cut it with an even tinier knife. However, he could not figure out which for and knife it was.

Maka seemed to notice his confusion with the silverware and she could only smile kindly toward him. "You do not have to worry about manners. If you are comfortable with eating with your hands, then feel free to do so."

"Thanks."

It was like a weight had been taken off his shoulders. It was freedom for him to eat apples, chicken and turkey with his hands. He even had to widen the hole in his helmet so he could eat more at once. The food tasted wonderful, it was nothing like the chickens he catch and kill. It was nothing like he had every tasted, nothing could compare to the heavenly food displaying in front of him.

Maka giggled cutely as she watched him shove every kind of food into his mouth, chewing it loudly with his mouth open.

Soul had a hard time ignoring the small tugging sensation on the corner of his lips.

The king however was not pleased. He chewed slowly on a chicken wing as his eyes darted from the queen to Soul. The king didn't enjoy the eyes of his queen. Her eyes lingered too long on the assassin for his liking.

With grace Maka wiped her mouth with a napkin. "I hope you enjoyed the food."

"Yeah. Thanks." He said as he wiped his mouth from the grease on his cheeks and lips. "It was delicious."

"Would you like some dessert―"

"No dessert!" The king hollered loudly and stood up from his chair. "He got his meal, now he will leave!"

"Kid." Maka stood up from her own seat. "You can't be rude. He does not deserve any more hostility."

"He deserves the whole world's hatred!" Kid hollered and threw the fork on the ground, taking a step toward him. "The last thing he deserve is having a meal by our table and your kindness. Don't you see he is preying on your generosity and kindness?!"

"He deserves kindness than anyone else!" For the first time, Maka raised her voice and still she sounded nice and elegant.

Kid growled loudly and took a step toward her, "He does n―"

A crystal spike suddenly shot up from the ground and pointed toward Kid. It made him backpedal in shock and stare at the tip with shock and fear.

"That is as close as you get to her." Soul spoke coolly as he got up from his seat. "You weren't grown up on the streets. I know what happens when a male screams at his woman. Abuse. That is what happens and the queen has done nothing to earn it." His eyes wandered to Maka and slowly he nodded. "I appreciate your kindness and I thank you for the meal. I can show myself out." He turned on his heel and started to head toward the exit. With a quick hand motion the crystal spire turned to dust before it turned into nothing.

"Wait! I'm coming with you." The heel of her boots echoed rapidly as she joined his side. "I'm very sorry about the king's behavior. He should not have lashed out on you like that."

"It's fine." Soul sighed heavily as he kept walking toward the exit he'd memorized when he walked inside. "I'm used to being treated like that. It isn't anything new."

"That is the thing." Maka grabbed his hand and forced him to come to a stop a hall away from the exit. "You shouldn't be used to it. You deserve so much more than you are receiving. You deserves smiles, laughter and friends. You are the person who deserves the most love here in this world."

"Why?" He looked into her green eyes. The corners of his lips tugged once again. "Why in the world do you think so highly of me? I don't get it."

"You want to know?"

He nodded.

Maka neared him. A playful smile shone up her face and her hand wandered up his arm to his chest, gently caressing the armor with her palm. Her face came closer and closer to his. He could swear he could feel her heat from her body through the crystal armor of his. "Come back tonight. Come to the West side of the castle when the sun has set. I will leave a window open for you." Her face was suddenly away from his and she walked away from him.

He had to see her.

It was not up for discussing. He _needed_ to see her. She was like a drug to him and he needed her in order to solve the mystery of life and his own purpose of life. He felt like _she_ was the answer to everything, everything he ever wanted and needed she had and he had to have whatever she had to offer him.

The night couldn't come too early. He was… excited to see her again. He had never been excited about anything before, well, maybe going and killing people, but never for something like meeting someone. Meeting someone like Maka.

It was easy for him to sneak over the fence with the help of his crystal ability and with the help of the darkness, it was a piece of cake getting to the West side of the castle. As promised, Maka had left a window open for him. On the second floor. A tree was beside it and he guessed she thought he was supposed to get up with the help of it, but he was in no need of it.

Crystals formed under his feet and lifted him up toward the window. He looked inside and there she was, sitting on a royal bed. Her face lit up when she saw him climb inside of the window, dissolving the crystal outside of the window.

"Soul." She smiled from side to side of her face. "You came."

"I am a curious man in need of answers." He closed the windows behind him and only the moon provided light in the dark room. "What is the answer?"

A soft smile played on her lips as she stood up from the bed and neared him. Her hair beautifully poured around her face. Absolutely stunning. "Can you please take off your helmet?" She whispered as her hands settled on his chest, running over the crystal armor of his.

"Why?" He tried not to be bothered by her hands, but they were a _huge_ distraction.

"Because I would like to see your face."

How could he deny her when she viewed him with those large green eyes? He knew he didn't have the heart to go against such an innocent request. She was special and had enchanted him. He was sure of it.

The helmet cracked at the sides and he removed the crystal helmet from his face, running a hand through his thick white hair. "There. Now answer my question."

"Of course." She spoke and she came closer to him. Her chest almost pressed against his as her hands wandered up his chest. "People see you as a murderer and a demon. I have heard how awful they speak of you and I could not disagree with what they are saying than what I already do." Her hands journeyed up his neck to gently cup his face. His skin burned with pleasure and he allowed himself to sink into her touch, for once allowing another human to take care of him. "When I looked into your eyes at the hot spring, I knew immediately you were no demon or Satan. I could see the hurt you bear and the wounds you try to cover up. You are dying inside with pain and it isn't fair."

"It is no secret I bear pain." His fingers twitched. He wished to pull her closer to him and relish in her scent and comfort, but he knew he couldn't. He had to uphold his wall. He couldn't let anyone see him. He had to be strong for himself, people are only dead weight which he didn't need. "What is it to you?"

"You are hurting like no one else and you have this amazing power you could use for good instead of harvesting innocent lives." Her eyes peered at him. "Why did you choose this life? Why in the world would you want to kill people?"

"Why?" He asked. "Because I have this ability to protect myself. I'm blessed with this power to strike those who rise against me dead. I can get back at those who anger me and I can do everything those people did to hurt me. I can get my revenge on everybody in this cursed world." He didn't mean to share that much about him, but with her impossible green eyes staring into his, he couldn't keep it in. It came out in a wave of truth.

"Who hurt you?"

His eyebrows rose a little in shock before the settled in the emotionless expression he upheld. He expected her to question why he could hurt people, why he would do something so horrible, but she didn't.

"Everyone." His teeth sunk into the inside of his cheek. "My family abandoned me when I was a kid. I don't even know who they were. I was always alone and everywhere I went, people looked at me with despise and disgust. I was only a little boy. I did nothing to anger them. No one helped me. They turned their back to me and I had to steal food to survive."

The queen nodded, indicating she listened carefully to his words. "That explains the anger and hurt. But why did you decide to kill people?"

His fists clenched. "It was night." He gulped. "I was starving. I saw a cat with blue fur. I followed it to the woods where I then sneaked up on it. My stomach was growling so loudly and I knew I needed food soon because most likely, I wouldn't have enough energy to steal food in the morning. And with a swirl of my hand, the crystal shot up from the ground and killed the cat." He remembered that day so well. He remembered the aching pain in his stomach, just wishing for a piece of bread. He had begged the people walking by to spare any eatable item to him, but they only huffed and walked away.

The cat had stilled his hunger for food and it was for the first time in a very long time he felt full, but the madness had only begun.

"A couple had seen me run into the woods. The man came with a sword and a shield in his hands, ready to kill me. His wife only stood and watched as he swung at me. The crystals protected me from the man and had pierced his body. The wife was devastated and she sent the whole village on me."

To this day, he could smell the burned wood from the torches and hear the hollers from the villagers. He recalled his heavy breathing and his aching bare feet hitting the coble ground and occasionally stepping on something sharp that drew blood from his feet.

"They cornered me. They beat me to the ground and one person stabbed my leg with a hayfork. In that moment, the crystals sprouted up from the ground and stabbed right through each and every single one of them. The blood from my leg immediately crystalized and the wound appeared like it was only a scratch instead of a serious one."

"Oh Soul." Her thumbs gently caressed his cheeks, her eyes looking into his with despair. Maybe sorrow. "No little boy should go through that. You faced the most ugly and unfair side of the world all alone with no one by your side. It wasn't fair. No one deserves to face something like that."

"I survived." He backed away from her touch, feeling his throat running dry. "That is what it all comes down. I survived and all the fuckers that stood in my way got what they deserved; death. The one who look at me like how they did, they end up dead at my feet with their blood on my hands."

"That can't be a good way to live." She countered by taking a step toward him and her hands settled on his cheeks again. "You are so much better than they. You are so much better than everybody. You have this amazing ability you could use for good. You could use that pain to fuel yourself to do good, to save lives and I believe you are the perfect person to do so."

"Good? Even if I tried to be good people would still fear me and not accept my help. It is easier being bad than being good."

Why would he even want to be good? He wasn't going to change for one girl. Everybody looked at him with hatred and fear, no one dared to stand against him and so was it going to be. The queen would be no different. Soon she would come to hate him.

"Breaking the cycle cannot be easy." Her thumbs brushed his face and he swore her face seemed to near his. "But I believe you can do it― I _know_ you can do it. I want to help sooth your pain and I want to be with you because there is something special with you that has me chained to you."

"Wait. What?" His eyes widen.

Maka's chest collided with his and she buried her face on his chest. Surprisingly, he enjoyed where this was going. "You have me enchanted. I do not want to be away from you. I enjoy your company and your face brightens my day and you are constantly on my mind. When I see the white Daisies in the royal garden I cannot think of anything but your hair and when I see the roses I can't think of anything else than your eyes. Everything I see leads to you. You are the answer to everything. I have fallen quickly and so hard for you."

His heart skipped a beat and his throat suddenly ran dry.

She liked him. More than like. Like as in romantically. He had never had anyone who loved him. Never had anyone who believed in him as a person instead of his abilities to kill. Never was he wanted by anyone and now when that one person had arose, he wasn't going to walk away.

"Queen―"

"No, call me Maka. I don't want to be a queen to you. I want to be someone personal, someone intimate and―"

"Maka." Gently he pried off her face from his chest and surprisingly he was tears in her eyes. A very tragic sight for someone so beautiful. A sight he had to fix. "Stop talking." His wall collapsed the moment his lips connected with the ones of the queen. Strawberries. Her lips tasted like strawberries and milk. The most delicious mix.

Eagerly she kissed him back. He was surprised how well their lips fit together and how in sync they were. No kiss was sloppy, no caress of their hands were emotionless and thoughtless, and no intentions were platonic. The assassin had fallen quick and hard for the queen and for once, he was going to allow himself to be free from the facade he had created for himself. He wanted to be himself and show her who he truly was. He wanted to be a better person for her.

Her hands freed themselves from his neck and found the stings to her dress on her back. Rapidly she untied them and let the fabric sink down and expose her chest.

The assassin's eyes widened as he stared at the twin buns in front of him, just as perfect as any other part of her. "Do not stare at me like that." She attracted his attention and a deep blush spread on her face. "Hurry up and get undressed."

"Huh?" He sounded like an idiot. "Are you sure you want this? Now?"

"Yes." She exhaled and wrapped her arms around his neck, her lips connected with the exposed neck of his. "Please, it feels like my heart is going to explode if I don't show you just how much I love you."

He could not believe his ears, what his queen was suggesting, but even if he couldn't believe it was rude to keep a lady waiting.

His armor cracked at the sides until it fell apart, exposing brown pants and a white string shirt.

Her hands were all over him and his were over hers, tugging down the dress to pool around her feet. His hands touched every patch of skin he found, back, thighs, chest, neck, shoulders, he touched every skin he came across and he loved the smooth texture of every bit of her. His mouth moved against hers chaotically as she kept tugging at his hair, pulling him closer to her.

He could feel when she snapped. Her hands tugged at his hair and twisted his body around and her hands found his waistband and quickly pulled them down. He complied and stepped out of them as he backed Maka into the bed. Carefully he laid her down on the huge bed and helped her crawl to the center without their lips breaking.

Their lips finally broke and he grabbed a hold of the hem of his shirt and yanked it over his head, discarding it on the ground.

His eyes noted her swollen lips from their heated kisses and her eyes flickered down his naked chest toward his as bare hips and legs.

"Wow…" Maka whispered, her delicate fingers caressed her swollen lips. "You look…"

"Like a beaten animal? Like a―"

"Do not degrade yourself." She cut him off and her hand caressed his rough cheek. "You are… manly."

He cocked his eyebrow. "Manly?"

She blushed a bright red and with the moonlight hitting her face, it made her look even cuter than she already was. "It isn't easy to find a word to describe you. You are so… manly, attractive, special and utterly amazing."

Soul chuckled heartily and his hands caressed her waist, feeling the smooth pale skin of hers. "You aren't that bad yourself. You are gorgeous beyond belief and you are the most perfect woman I have ever seen in my entire life."

Her blush only deepened. "I'm not perfect. I'm far from perfect."

"You have no idea then what perfection is."

"Then certainly you do not."

He raised his eyebrow quizzically. "What are you talking about?"

"You are perfect." She smiled gently toward him as she sat up slowly. "Maybe a little rough around the edges, but you are still perfect. The perfect man for me. I never thought I would meet someone who made me feel alive and so much all at once. I can't stop thinking about you and I don't want you to leave me." She flung her arms around him and he didn't ever think feeling a girl's naked chest pressing against his would ever feel so pleasurable.

"I'm not going anywhere." He whispered into her ear. "You are my home now. I have no plans of ever abandoning my home."

"Oh Soul." Their mouths connected and their love filled the room in one millisecond. Soul's finger hooked in her underwear and soon they too joined the rest of the clothes on the floor. They were both as bare as physical possible, but the nakedness of their bodies did not even compete with the bare and vulnerable state both of their hearts were.

Soul hovered over her, their chests pressing against the other's as they kissed heatedly and passionately. Their hands explored each other and Maka moaned softly into his mouth. His hands kneaded her chest before one slowly wandered down pass her stomach and to―

Her hand gripped his wrist just before he would touch her most intimate area. Maka pulled away from the kiss. "I have never done this before."

He cocked his eyebrow. "You are married." He stated.

"It was an arranged marriage. I did not marry him out of love. I married him because that is what is of the best interest of my kingdom. Fortunate for me he never asked to finalize the marriage even though he did hold feelings for me I could never reciprocate." She blushed and caressed his cheek. "Have you been with someone before?"

His heart sunk with disappointment. Not for her, but for himself. "Two times with hookers." He looked away from her and now it wasn't worth the poor fuck the two hookers had given him. It was nothing but short pleasure he could offer himself with his hand. He had wasted something so precious on a hooker when he could have given his queen it.

"Hey." She cupped his face and steered it back to look into her eyes. "You are here with me now. I wanted to know if it hurt. I overheard maidens talking and they said it hurt badly. Will it hurt as much to me?"

"I was never with pure women." He spoke and cupped her face. "I don't know if it will hurt. If you feel uncomfortable or it starts to hurt, we can stop. I promise you I will try to be as gentle as I can."

"I know you will." She worked her legs out from underneath him and placed on either side of his hips. "Let's do this."

He smiled and nodded gently. "Okay."

The sun shone into the room and hit the sleeping woman's face deliciously. He watched her chest raise to then fall. The memories of the night kept playing in his head, feeling her breath on his ear and hearing her sweet mewls and moans as they made love for the very first time. It was the best sensation he had ever experienced. He could never regret meeting Maka. He would go through those twenty years of hell just so he could spend one more night like this with the girl he treasured.

His thumb gently caressed her naked hip. She had done a really good job with the pain and she had passed out like a candle when they were done. She deserved all the sleep she could get, which was why he refused to wake her up. Besides, it was enjoyable for him to watch her sleep peacefully.

He didn't know how many minutes or hours went by until she moaned and her eyes fluttered open. He was so taken by her beauty and how she had blossomed into the rarest and most precious flower there was.

"God morning." She murmured and scooted closer to him.

"Morning." His hand ran up and down the perfect valley of her waist. "Slept well?"

"Like a log." Her hand settled on his chest. "You?"

"Never better." He leaned forward and planted a light kiss on her forehead. "You were great last night."

"Speak of yourself. You were remarkable." She giggled and her hand gently caressed his skin. "I never thought it would be like this. I never thought it would hurt so much and at the same time be so pleasurable and intimate. It is nothing like I have heard of."

Soul chuckled and pulled her flush to his body. "Being compared to your gossip maidens is kind of hurtful. Do you think what we have could ever be compared to the poor intimacy they had?"

"No," Her smile fell and so did her eyes. "That is why it is so sad. They were used for a man's pleasure. It is a shame they didn't feel the astonishing wave of love and want like I did. I wish they also could feel the same love like I did."

"They have to find someone else because I'm unavailable." He chuckled heartily and his lips connected with her forehead and her cheeks.

"You better." She giggled and their lips connected, sharing a passionate kiss. "You are mine and mine only." She murmured into his lips as her hands ran up to his neck. Her leg threw over his and he automatically laid down on his back and allowed his queen to mount him.

"Consider me yours. Yours forever."

He had learned so many things over the past day. He learned he wasn't the heartless beast he thought he was. He was truly a man with bad experience who only expected the worst and wanted to be the worst, but with a gentle touch from an angel he melted and became only hers. He had never thought he could be possessive of a woman before, but even the thought of his queen with someone else made his stomach flip with disgust and heart to clench. He knew he would have to do something about the king in order for them to truly be together. It would be easy for him to simply storm inside of his chamber and kill him, but he knew Maka would be disappointed with him and he didn't want to let her down.

His Maka. His lovely queen. The woman who snatched his heart in front of him. He still doesn't know how she managed to worm her way inside of his heart so quickly and took over, but he is glad she did and he will love her till the end of the world.

"Your majesty!"

Maka's eyes snapped open and her lips froze on his. "Oh no." She immediately jumped off him and stumbled out of the bed. "It is my maiden. I need to go." She quickly grabbed her underwear and put it on. "You need to get out of here. If she finds you Kid will know you were here."

He nodded and got out of the bed. "Okay. When will I see you again?" He asked as he stepped into his pants and pulled his shirt over his head.

The maiden called for Maka again and she flinched. She was getting closer and the heavy wooden doors to ever room opened loudly. It was just a matter of time before she would open their door. "Tonight." Maka pulled her dress up. "When the sun sets. Come here and I will have a meal prepared for you."

"Okay," With the flick of his hand the crystal armor of his attracted to him like a magnet, slamming together all around him. He smirked wide and neared his queen. "Night cannot come too soon." Their lips met for a quick farewell and he threw himself out of the window just before the maiden opened the door.


	2. Part 2

Summary: "He is a _killer!_ Don't you see what danger you put us in by inviting _him?!_ He is _the Soul Eater!"_

"Why did you choose this life? Why in the world would you want to kill people?"

"Why?" He asked. "Because I have this ability to protect myself. I'm blessed with this power to strike those who rise against me dead. I can get back at those who anger me and I can do everything those people did to hurt me. I can get my revenge on everybody in this cursed world."

Armour of pure crystal and a sword made of compacted crystals. He's Soul Eater, the infamous killing machine. You come in his way, and he will take your life.

**The Legend of the Crystal Kingdom part 2**

Soul was happier than he has ever been. Every day he spent outside of the Albarn kingdom, using his crystal power like he had never tried before. He discovered a new part of himself. He could change color of his crystals and now when he thought about, his crystals did weep when they were shaped into deadly weapons. They weren't meant to use as lethal weapons, then what were they meant to be used as? It was a mystery of himself he had never even thought about.

Every night as soon as the sun set behind the horizon, he sneaked inside of the Albarn castle and met his queen. They shared meals and talked about everything that came to their minds. The nights always ended with them either cuddling up together and falling asleep in each other's arms, or they made love, wanting to be as close as physical possible to each other.

Beautiful days went by, and Soul found himself falling more and more in love with his queen. As they fell more in love, Maka fell more miserable with her marriage with her king. She was a married woman but her heart belonged to another man.

Their joy would come to a sudden halt.

Soul sat on sand near a river, hearing the sound of the water and the birds chirp happily. His helmet rested beside his hip his crystal gloves right beside it.

His eyes were set on his bare hand. A crystal grew slowly in his hand. Pearls of sweat glistered on his forehead. The crystals slowly turned to a blood-red color as the crystals took a new shape than the spikes he usually made.

CRACK!

His focus was broken when his safety crystals were broken. Someone had stepped on them and the person was heading his way.

The crystal in his hand shattered and the gloves and helmet rejoined their correct places on his hands and head. His hand grabbed the sword stuck in the ground and readied himself. "Show yourself!"

And the person did. Over the hill walked appeared a short man with a top hat and a sharp nose. He knew exactly who that was and at the moment it was the last person he wanted to see.

"Mosquito." He growled under his breath. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm on the behalf of the sisters of the Gorgon kingdom." His hand sneaked inside of his coat and brought out a neat white envelope. "They asked me to find you and deliver you this."

Soul did not have to guess what it was. It was another letter with the location and picture of who his next target was. He had taken two jobs before from the Gorgon Sisters and they paid him handsomely. They were also very brave since he had a nasty reputation of killing his bosses in the end. When he grew tired of taking orders, he simply killed them and he knew the Gorgon Sisters were testing him, testing his patience with them because he is certainly tired of being bossed around by them.

But he did need the money. One more mission couldn't hurt.

Soul reached out and grabbed the envelope. "Now go before I decide to cut off your nose and feed it to you." He bared his teeth and immediately, the old man bowed before he hightailed away from him.

He was certainly wiser than the Gorgon Sisters.

The letter contained as he knew. There was a drawing of a man with long hair and a straw in his mouth. The information said he was a samurai from Japan and he had some deadly skills, skills that could kill warriors, but skills not enough to stop The Soul Eater.

That evening, he used his newfound skills to disguise himself from the gardeners and maidens who strolled in the royal garden, however, his eyes settled on the king and beside him sat the guard with the crazy blue hair.

Carefully Soul stuck to the shadows and listened carefully onto their conversation.

"― acting strange." The king Kid spoke to the guard. "She no longer sleeps in her own room and she always disappears from dinner. I also heard she has been asking for food from the chefs. Something is going on and I want to know what it is."

Black*Star nodded, the metal of his armor rustled. "Do you want me to spy on her or guard her?"

"Both. I want you to keep an eye on her and figure out why she acts like she does. This is no coincidence. Guard her and make sure she does not wander around."

Soul heard enough. Kid knew something was going on and if he had to guess, he was suspicious of his and Maka's relationship. Maka had given quite a performance at the dining table and so had he, he had to know the timing of her change of behavior and him had to have a connection.

Soul had to give him credit. He was cleverer than he gave him credit for.

He had heard enough so he sneaked to the west wing like usual and snuck inside. This time, Maka wasn't there. Depended on that the sun hadn't set and in a few minutes Maka would most likely be eating dinner with the king. If she went to the west wing afterward with Black*Star tailing her, they would be found out.

He had to do something. Fast.

He needed to give a sign to Maka. A sign telling her to not walk to the west wing.

An idea appeared in his mind.

Immediately he shredded his crystal armor and pushed it under the bed. Better safe than sorry.

He went through the closet inside of the room and found a sheet for the bed. He wrapped it around him and started to dust himself with his crystals, making the sheet look more like a brown maiden dress with a white apron. He mixed his hair with strings of crystal so his hair looked more like a fine sunny blond than a cold white. He made curves with his crystals so he would appear… more feminine. He couldn't do much about his eyes and teeth, but he guessed it was for the better. Maka had to recognize him somehow.

He didn't look well in his disguise, but it was better than nothing.

Soul exited the room and slowly headed down the hallways. He met some maidens and luckily for him, they didn't pay any attention to him. They giggled and walked passed him without paying any attention to him.

His disguise was working.

He found the way to the dining room and saw Maka seated by the table, eating much faster than she did when he dined with her. She was practically shoving the food and chewing quickly.

Black*Star stood by the wall, watching both of them with his spire on his back.

Soul would have to be careful not to be noticed or seen as suspicious. He noticed a maiden walked out of a door with a can of wine, which she walked up to the king and queen, offering them a glass of it.

She must have come out of the kitchen and there was his ticket home. He followed the walls so he wouldn't attract the attention of the king and the guard. He snuck inside of the "kitchen" which proved to be the wine cellar, which didn't matter since it would still offer as a good disguise. He grabbed a random bottle of wine and walked back to the dining room where he found Maka taking her last bite of a chicken wing.

He walked up to her. "Would you like some wine?" He raised his voice so it wouldn't be so husky and low. Soul held forward the wine bottle so she could read the etiquette, but when her eyes met his, she wasn't interested with the wine. "Your majesty?" He let his teeth peek out to her, short enough so the king wouldn't notice but enough for her to know.

With a gentle tap of his finger crystal dust crawled up the wine and made a message only for her. _"Do not go to west. Go to your room."_ He made sure her eyes had the time to read and process the message before the dust fell to her lap.

"Um," her eyes returned to his and confusion was clear as water on her face.

"Leave the bottle, thank you." The king spoke.

Soul nodded toward Kid, leaving the bottle by Maka. Her mouth gapped like she wanted to say something to him. He shook his head slowly at her, trying to send out a message of not doing anything reckless. He seemed to reach her since she slouched down in her seat and dropped her eyes to her lap where the crystal dust still laid.

He went out of the diner room and made sure not to be seen by Black*Star or any other maidens when he entered her bedroom. Immediately he discarded the sheet and dusted off the crystal and took the strings out of his hair. He didn't need to wait for too long before Maka walked inside of the bedroom with a basket of strawberries in her hand.

"What is going―" She asked quickly Soul crossed the room and covered her mouth.

"Not so loud." Soul whispered, slowly removing his hand from her mouth. "I overheard a conversation between Kid and Black*Star earlier. He has made Black*Star spying on you because you have been acting different."

"What? He did?" She sounded shocked and her wide eyes didn't fail her.

"Yes. I think Kid is on to us. He suspects we are still in contact."

"Oh Kid." Maka sighed heavily and gently walked passed Soul, putting down the basket of strawberries on her bed.

"That's not all of it."

"Please tell me there is something positive." She took a seat on her bed and gazed into his eyes like there were stars on the sky. "I don't think I can handle any more bad news."

"I know you wouldn't like it if I told you tomorrow." Soul took a seat beside her and grabbed her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Today a man approached me―"

"Just get it over with." She leaned to him and buried her forehead in his neck. "Just say it."

He sighed and rested his head on hers. "I got a letter of my next target. That means I have to leave for an unknown amount of time."

He knew the news were bad and it pained him to tell her it, but it hurt her even more. She burst out into tears and sobbed loudly. He wrapped his arms around her and muffled her sobs with his chest. Gently her rocked her in his arms but it didn't sooth the pain she felt.

"You were just going to leave? Why would you leave? Why do you have to leave?" She sobbed and his shirt quickly got soaked with her tears.

"I don't want to leave you, but this is something I have to do. I need to sever my connection and as soon as I have done that, I will be all yours. There will be nothing keeping me away from y―"

"If you feel like this is something you need to do, you aren't going to leave me here. I refuse to sit around waiting for you for who knows how long. I refuse to be away from you." She looked up from his chest and fisted his shirt. "You are not going to reject me. You can't keep me here. You can't force me to stay."

He sighed heavily, he didn't know if it was with annoyance or relief. Having Maka on the road did sound wonderful, of sharing every moment with her and showing her the world, it excited him. Then again, he would be responsible of her safety. Many thieves and murderers in the underground world could target her and put her in danger. He would have to leave her for a day or two when he sought his target and the Gorgon Sisters to assassinate them. Who knew what could happen to her in the meantime.

He would no longer be alone, but to what cost? Maybe getting Maka killed or maybe sold as a sex slave on the underground market? If he could avoid that fate, he would.

Then again, he was The Soul Eater. He wouldn't let her get hurt. He is confident in his ability and there was no way he was going to fail. Not when he had someone as wonderful as Maka. No way was he going to fail.

"It won't be like living in the castle. You will have to sleep on the ground, maybe even eating two meals instead of three. It isn't an easy life." He looked straight into his eyes. He needed to read her if there was any sign of hesitation.

"I do not care. I will manage. All I need is you."

He would lie if saying those words didn't touch him.

He leaned forward and planted a gentle kiss on her lips, which she responded happily to, trying to convey her need for him. Soul pulled away from her and rested his forehead on hers. "You will be away for a very long time. How could you convince the king to let you go?"

"I will not tell him. We simply leave." She murmured, bringing him closer to her by grabbing his shirt. "We can leave. Now or tomorrow or the day after that."

"Won't your kingdom need you?"

"Kid knows how to rule a kingdom. He will do fine when we are away. I have most of the time just been his jewelry. Nothing will change. I promise."

He sighed heavily and his eyes found the ceiling very interesting. "What am I going to do with you?" He muttered mostly for himself.

"Take me with you. If you will not. I will grab a horse and I will hunt you down like there is no tomorrow."

He had received many threats through his days, but none of them made his stomach stir with excitement. Excitement because the thought of his beloved queen would hunt him down was adorable. He could live hearing threats from her.

"We can't have that, can we?" He smiled and cupped her face gently. "I give up. You can come along but whatever I say, you do. If I tell you to run, you run. If I tell you to hide, you hide."

She nodded eagerly. "I will. You can count on me."

"You do understand if I tell you to run and save yourself, you save yourself."

Her body froze and her eyes widen in shock. "Soul I―"

"No Maka. You will listen to what I say. You will be my responsible and I can't let anything happen to you. I can't _let_ anything to happen to you. I will be devastated if something happened to you. There are people who have put a bounty on your head and I can't let them get you. I can't let _anyone_ take you away from me. If by preventing you from getting yourself into trouble by leaving you here, I will. You will have to give me your word you will do anything and I mean _anything_ I tell you to do."

Maka sighed heavily and her eyes fell from his own, facing the floor as she rested her chin in his hands. "I promise, but you got to promise me in return to not take any unnecessary risks. I don't want to lose you either."

He smiled gently and nodded. "I promise."

Early that morning, they got up from their bed in West wing. Maka had her bag with extra set of clothes that made her blend into the crowd and some foods she wanted with her on the road. They snuck out of the castle's ground before the sun peeked from the tree tops. They were together on the road and not only the mere nights they shared inside of the castle's walls. They were finally together in the wake of the day and Maka couldn't help but smile brightly. Soul had seen her smile before, but she never smiled with such happiness, it made her _glow._

He learned so much about Maka and about her character. As they moved from kingdom to kingdom, every person she met she greeted with a large smile and she offered the little food they had to homeless orphans and beggars on the streets. He understood why Maka was praised and loved by so many people, she was hard _not_ to like since she was so friendly toward every person she came by. Even when sellers were rude to her, she was nice back, which made his heart melt and his fists to clench. He turned into a warm gush since she couldn't possibly be mean to anyone, and therefore he wanted to punch the seller for being rude to such an amazing person. Maka sensed his distress every time and she would cup his face and stare into his eyes. Like that, the anger would disappear. She was truly his safety net and his medicine for happiness.

He was happy. He was happier than he had ever remembered. His whole life was misery and pain and all he could think about was how could he live such a toxic life? Why was he so angry all the time when he could let go and be happy?

His greatest worry came along three weeks into their journey. Maka got sick. She threw up and exhaustion wore her off quickly. He was terrified she had caught something life-threatening, but it was far from life-threatening, it was the miracle of life. Maka was pregnant with _their_ child. He was going to be a father and the baby would have the most amazing mother ever. He was so happy and content he could die happily, although he had no plans on ever dying. Not now when he finally received happiness and damned he would cling onto the happiness like never before.

Only the missions he had to complete brought him down. He didn't want to do it. He didn't want to kill anyone. But he did it anyway. He reluctantly left Maka at a safe location in the woods by a river. It was close to the volcano Arachnephobia so the chance of anyone coming was low. As a last safety resort he had lined up discreet protective walls and had arranged a high sensitive alarm system around the area she lived at. He made sure no one would reach her and hurt her or their unborn child.

For one week he was away. He killed the samurai, collected his reward from the Gorgon Sisters to then finish both of them off. On the seventh day, he knew he would no longer slay any other person for money or from anger. He decided he would bury his sword as soon as they got back to Maka's kingdom and he would never use his skills to take another person's life if Maka's life wasn't threatened.

On the seventh evening as the sun colored the sky a bright pink color, he ran. He ran as quickly as his legs would allow him. A heavy weight was lifted off his shoulders. He was happier and absolutely weightless. He grabbed his sword and ripped it from his hip and he let it go. The sword hit the grass and he didn't care about it. He continued to run as the armor started to break apart. Long cracks ran all over his armor and bits broke off the armor he had so long treasured for so many years.

Soul quickly made a steppingstone and used to jump over the protective wall he had created. He smiled wide as he let go. The crystal armor and the walls erupted and turned into a cloud of blue dust. His smile only widened when he saw the face he had longed for so long. The large belly of hers and the face that lightened up his life and saved him from misery.

Maka's face lit up the whole forest. She grabbed the hem of her grey dress and held it high so she could run faster. "Soul!" She yelled happily.

"Maka!" He opened his arms wide and she threw herself in his embrace. She giggled into his ear as her lips kissed his jaw, cheek, forehead, nose, eyes, every piece of skin she could find. "I missed you." He whispered into her ear as he inhaled her sweet scent of green apples and vanilla. "Not a moment went by I didn't miss you."

"So did I." She pulled away from him and her hands gently traced his cheek with tears in her eyes. "The baby has missed you too. She has been anxious to hear your voice again. She missed you just as much as I did."

"She?" He questioned as he set his hand on her seven month pregnant stomach.

"Yes." She set hers on his. "I have a feeling it is a she."

He smiled. A girl. A little Maka. A perfect pure little girl with the same striking green eyes as her with the largest heart there was. With her shape of her face and her same blond hair. Just like her mother.

Maka grabbed his hand and led him to the small camp he had set up for her. Soul took a seat on the ground and Maka sat in between his legs, resting her back against his chest as they both caressed her swollen stomach.

"You don't have your armor or your sword anymore." She stated with her eyes closed in content.

"I dumped it. I won't need it any longer." He whispered in her ear as he caressed her stomach, feeling the small kicks of their little baby.

Her smile widened even more. "No more violence?"

"No more violence." He stated. "We can be together. Nothing can keep us apart anymore." His hand slowly wandered up her stomach and passed her chest. "And I have a gift to you."

"Gift?" She said surprised.

"Yes." His hand settled on where the pin stuck the two ends of her mantel together at her collarbones. "I have been practicing for a very long time now, and I think I finally got the hang of it." Underneath his palm crystals slowly rose. Slowly the crystal latched onto the pin on her mantel. The crystal shaped into desired form and when he removed his hand, a beautiful light blue crystal rose decorated her pin.

Maka gasped loudly and her fingers caressed the petal of the flower. "Soul, it is beautiful!" She leaned her head backwards so she could look into his eyes. "I can feel it. Your crystals. They aren't weeping anymore!" Her hand found his cheek and gently caressed it. "They are happy. They are joyful for you."

He may have the ability of making and shaping crystals, but Maka had a power of her own. She could find the smallest hurt in a person and make it disappear. He had taken his whole painful persona and completely changed him. She could not make any enemies, she could only befriend people. Everybody loved her and he was the lucky one who snatched her heart. He could not have asked for more.

His hand gently cupped her cheek and planted a loving kiss on her lips. "I am able to control crystals, but you have something far more superior than my ability." He only received a raised eyebrow for answer. "Everybody loves you. All you need to do is smile and they love you automatically. There is not a single person in this world who could dislike you. You are unable to dislike anyone."

"That is not true." She caressed his cheek. "I dislike a lot of things and there are people who don't like me. For an example, I dislike whole-grilled pigs they serve and olives. Some of the maidens at the castle don't like me since they say I am "false" in their words."

"They are just jealous." He nuzzled close to her face. "They are just jealous you are such an amazing person and they aren't. They wished they were as loved and lucky as you are." He planted a kiss on her cheek. "And seriously, why don't you like olives? They are really good."

"It is stupid. But it is something with the taste and texture I don't like. It rubs me the wrong way and I can't find myself to enjoy them."

"You know you don't have to like _everything._"

"I know, but everybody seems to like them so much and I don't want to disappoint anyone by not eating them."

"You are only disappointing them by not telling them." His lips wandered down to her jaw and pressed his lips to her soft skin. "They want to please you, and if they keep giving you something you don't like they failed at serving you. You can tell them as soon as we get back to the castle. It is better for them to know."

She sighed in pleasure. "I will." Her forehead suddenly made contact with his and she wrapped her arm around his shoulders. "There is something I want to ask you of."

"Ask away." He whispered, felling his upper lip hovering over hers.

"It is a huge favor―"

"Ask Maka, you don't need to say anything. Whatever you want I'm more than happy to give you."

"Okay." She gulped. He could feel the nervousness ooze off her like smoke from a fire. "It is just― When we get back― oh my, it is harder than I thought." She inhaled loudly as Soul patiently waited for her. "I cannot― I _refuse_ to run my kingdom with Kid. I can't go back to stand beside Kid. I want _you_ to be my king and I want only _you_ to live with me in the castle. I cannot go back to sneaking around with you― I don't want to go back with this only being a nightly relationship. I want to share my whole life with you and I want you to be my husband. I don't want Kid, I want you and I will always only want you."

When they got back. He hadn't thought about it. He was so caught up in the present that he totally forgot they were going to head back toward Albarn Kingdom where Maka would return being the queen and he… he didn't know what he was supposed to do.

"I do want to be together with you. Day and night. I want our relationship to be known, but how are we supposed to do it? Is there a way we can get Kid off the throne and get you out of that marriage?"

Maka nodded. "There is a way. I'm carrying your child and since she has royal blood in her veins, she will be the heiress to the throne, which means it isn't Kid's child. With our baby Kid will have to give up the throne since it wouldn't matter if he had any kids with me, it wouldn't count. Kid and I would sever the marriage and I would marry you."

Maka had obviously given the subject a lot of thought. She had planned every little detail and thought around every obstacle, and she had found the perfect loophole.

If Soul was honest, he had no desire being king. He had no desire ruling a kingdom or caring for a people. But if his loved one needed him on the throne supporting her, he would be more than willing to help her out as well as he could even thought he would be the most hated king through history of human kind. There was no way they would accept him as a king. Heck, he wouldn't even accept himself as one.

Whatever his queen needed, he would be that person because she deserved the best. He didn't deserve an angel like her, but he would damned try to be what she deserved.

"How long have you been thinking about this?" He questioned.

"Since we found out I was pregnant." She whispered, her nose caressing his jaw. "I do not want to live without you. I do not want to sneak around."

"And we won't. If you want marriage and me as the king, then that is what you get." He grabbed her hand where her golden wedding ring decorated her finger. "In fact, let's start right now." Crystals crawled out of his hand and around the finger. It dense around the golden material and cloaked it with a deep grey shade. On the top of the new ring their names were engraved with classic cursive letters.

Maka's eyes went wide with shock as she admired the ring on her finger. "It's beautiful." Her index finger ran over the surface of the new ring on her finger. "I love it. It―" A sob.

"Maka?" He saw tears trickle down her cheeks, which she quickly wiped away with her hand. "Are you okay?"

"Yes." She sniffled, she brought her hand with the ring on close to her chest. "It is the most beautiful gift I have ever received." She sobbed loudly and her hand wandered up to the rose that decorated her pin. "Your gifts are so meaningful and the most beautiful I have ever receiving. I can feel your love and it makes me weep with joy because you made something so beautiful for me."

He was touched. It warmed him in the most delicious ways.

He pulled her closer to him and hugged her. "You better get used to it because I will make it my purpose in this life to please you at every possible way I can. I will forever be your servant." His hand cupped her face and gently wiped away her tears. She lay on her side so she could have better access to him.

"I would rather want you as my husband." And her lips connected with his, kissing him passionately. He savored the taste of her rich lips and the stir in his chest. He could kiss her forever and he would never get tired of it. With her pregnant belly on his and the cold of her ring caressing his cheek, he was in his happy place. There was nothing that could ever ruin this moment for h―

His eyes snapped wide open when he felt a crystal breaking on his alarm system. Soul pulled away from Maka and she immediately sensed his distress. "Is someone coming?"

He nodded as he helped he grabbed her hand and helped her up on her feet. "Stay behind me." He ordered which she complied. Their hands stayed entwined and her hand rested on his shoulder. He felt another crystal break and the intruder was closer.

Soul had done a good job covering up their tracks as they travelled. They hid inside of the forest for a reason. It was hard to orientate through if you didn't know where you were going. This person had somehow managed to find his way through the forest and found their camp, but h―

His armor. His sword. He only discarded them, not bothering with taking the whole half minute breaking them down since he just had to see his queen.

"Take a step backwards." Soul commanded.

Maka flinched and released her hand from his, taking a step backwards. "Is it dangerous?"

He swift his hand through the air and hoped for the best.

"Your majesty!" A high voice yelled and the intruder came out form the forest. "I finally found you!"

"Black*Star!" Maka exclaimed loudly.

The blue haired man pulled out his sword from its holster and held it toward Soul. "I have come to save you! Eater! Surrender and hand over the queen and I will let you walk away."

His heart skipped a beat. Just the thought of the obnoxious guard he had met months ago made his stomach stir with disgust. "I'm not going to let you take her from me." He could feel it. At the back of his head he could feel how the grass and moss pushed pass as it drew toward him.

"Then I will make you regret for kidnapping our precious queen!" He growled and his knuckles turned white as his teeth gritted loudly. "I will make you regret you were born! No one dares to _rape_ the queen!" Black*Star leaped toward them with his sword high and hatred in his eyes.

Hatred Soul was more than happy to respond to.

Soul growled and he was more than ready to hurt the asshole since he accused him of _raping_ his love of his life. He was going to pay!

"Stop it!" Maka grabbed Soul's hand and instantly threw herself in front of him. "Stop it! Stop it now!"

Black*Star was in midair and with his sword already descending toward them, toward _her._

"Maka!" His arms wrapped around her body and with the help of a crystal, he got the momentum to get away from Black*Star's sword slamming powerfully into the ground, creating dust clouds from the impact. Soul skidded on the back with Maka on top of him. His shirt definitely ripped in the process.

As soon as they came to a stop, Maka rolled off him and shook his shoulder. "Soul! Are you okay?"

"Damned." He growled and sat up, feeling how blood on his back turned to crystals. Maka must see it since her hand caressed a crystal on his back. "Don't worry." He groaned and grabbed her wrist. "I'm fine."

"You are hurt."

"I can still fight." He got up on his feet and rolled his shoulders. Crystals unlashed from his back and feel to the ground. Perfect blood red crystals.

"No Soul." She grabbed his hand and got up on her feet as well. "You can't fight him. I have known him my whole life. You can't hurt him. Let's just talk to him."

"Queen Maka!" Black*Star exclaims again, drawing their attention. "Come with me! Your kingdom needs you, your _husband and the king_ needs you!"

"Black*Star, Soul didn't kidnap me." Maka entwined their hands. "I followed willingly with him. I chose to leave from the castle on my own. He didn't force himself on me, I _wanted_ to be with him because I love him."

Black*Star growled loudly and he tightened his hand on his sword. "He has brained washed you! He is a _murderer!_ You wouldn't go with someone like _him!_"

"Shut the fuck up!" Soul roared and squeezed Maka's hand tightly. "I would _never_ hurt her! I would _never_ let _anyone_ even look at her in a negative light!"

"Soul." Maka cupped his face and pried his eyes over to hers. "Calm down. We can solve this. There is no need for yelling or violence."

Soul inhaled deeply and relaxed his trembling knuckles. He repeated his breathing pattern which Maka encouraged him happily.

"Die!" Black*Star hollered and swung his sword toward Soul.

Soul growled loudly and faster than ever, Soul's sword ran through the grass and caught it expertly in his hand. He blocked Black*Star's sword with it and he pried Black*Star backwards.

"Stop!" Maka exclaimed and put her hands on their chests. "Just stop this! You both are better than this!"

"Stay out of this!" Soul yelled and quickly he swept with his hand and crystals froze her feet to the ground. "I don't want you to get hurt, Maka. You got to stay out of this for your own good."

"Soul―" Soul swung is hand and a wall of crystals surrounded her.

With her finally safe from the fight, he could fight Black*Star without holding back. No one came and threatened to take his queen away from him. No one accused him of raping and kidnapping the one person that made him into the best of himself. Black*Star will regret he ever came looking for them.

Soul roared loudly and pushed Black*Star away from him. Their swords crashed again and again, their different egos and goals clashing on many different levels. In the back of his head, he heard Maka's pleads for them to stop through the crystal wall and he felt every pound of her fists. It was distracting, but nothing could distract him more than hearing her cry out for them to stop as _tears_ rolled down her cheeks.

And the distraction got the best of him.

Black*Star's foot slammed into his stomach and he is send backwards. He softened his fall by making crystal dust where he lands.

"Soul!" Maka screamed at the top of her lungs. He can feel how the crystal walls weaken from every punch she delivers to him and to his horror, she kept punching. She kept punching till the point her knuckles split and her blue blood stains on the crystal wall.

He needs to finish it quickly.

"Damn it." He growled and he swept his hands upward. Crystals erupted from the ground and the sharp ends point toward Black*Star. Black*Star skillfully avoided each and every one of them by jumping, rolling and throwing himself out of the ways. Their swords clashed once again and fists and kicks were exchanged. Soul's sword gashed his bicep, leaving crimson blood trickling down his steel armor.

His sword has not proven to fail him to break armor.

Soul made a quick hand movement and his feet froze to the ground. He swung his sword toward the man and He blocked it and countered quickly with a sweep of his own. Soul immediately backpedaled from the egg of the sword. Black*Star quickly grabbed his spire from his back and raised it, ready to launch.

Black*Star threw it and Soul easily moved aside.

Everything slowed down. His eyes moved behind him and saw how Maka's fist connected with the crystals and the wall broke, her blood-soaked knuckles all bruised and her blood was all over the crystals. The spire soared through the air, going toward her direction. His eyes widen and fear shot through his body and he quickly made a crystal coming up from the ground.

The spire impaled in her shoulder and her body was thrown back into the crystal wall behind her. Her cry of pain ripped through the air and her blood threw through the air.

His crystal didn't make it in time.

His throatripped as he screamed the name of the love of his life at the top of his lungs. The blue haired man was completely forgotten as he ran up to his love bleeding out in front of him.

"MAKAAAA!" He kept screaming as the crystals around her evaporated. He caught her in his arms with the spire sticking out of her shoulder. "Maka! Maka! Answer me!"

She hissed in pain and her eyes fluttered open. "It hurts." She groaned and her head slowly moved in discomfort. "Soul… it hurts."

He cupped her face and gently made her look into his eyes. "I'm sorry Maka. I'm so sorry. I have to pull the spire out of you. It's going to hurt."

She groaned louder and squeezed her eyes shut. "Just do it. Do it quickly."

He nodded and he grabbed the spire. She was lucky it wasn't a hook tip on the spire or else he would have to shatter her bone and push the spire through her. He counted her down and when he hit zero, he pulled the spire out of her and she cried out with pain, her blue blood soaking her white maiden dress.

He had to do something in order to stop the bleeding or else she would die within the hour of blood loss. He had to cauterize the wound and quickly. Starting a fire and warming up Black*Star's sword would take too long. He needed heat and that was quickly.

Slowly Soul's eyes wandered to the volcano rising from the tree tops.

Volcano Arachnophobia. He could easily get up there quick enough to cauterize the wound.

The lava from Arachnophobia is the only chance he has in saving her.

"Soul." She groaned as she gripped her wounded shoulder. "The baby… what is going to happen?"

Soul stood up on his feet and lifted her up. "We are going to Arachnophobia. You relax and focus on staying with me. Okay?"

"Arachnophobia?!" The warrior captain hollered loudly as he fought against the crystals keeping him stuck to the ground. "You are crazy! The volcano is guarded by huge spiders! You will get both of you killed!"

Soul couldn't care less what he thought. He ignored him as he made a crystal for Maka to block as much blood as possible from leaving her body. "Press this against the wound. It should help."

"T-thank you." She whispered as Soul made crystals grow out of his body, covering his skin and making a cocoon for Maka since he would need both of his hands for this one. He released his hands from her and the crystals allowed her to stay close to his body.

"You are going to be fine." Crystals grew from his feet and he skidded quickly toward Black*Star, snatching the steel sword from his hand and now wielded both swords. He used his crystals like a surfing board, to get to the mouth of the volcano as quick as possible. He rushed toward up the cliff toward the volcano and to his luck, there were no spiders in front of him. No ones were in sight as he came half way up the mountain.

A loud shriek caught his attention and it wasn't from Maka. He looked backward and saw a huge spider with nasty long legs and a red cross on its body.

He growled loudly and flipped around on his board. Crystals erupted form the ground and the spider moved quicker than he thought. One crystal pierced its side and it screamed loudly in pain which only attracted more spiders from their hideouts.

He was in serious trouble.

He couldn't kill all of them. It would take far too long time and he would end up with a lifeless Maka. He had to get away from them and that was quickly.

Soul growled loudly and he flung with his hands. Large pillars rose from the ground and went high to the sky. The pillars created bars which the spiders crashed quickly into, their nasty long legs scratched the surface and in between them.

Soul skidded to a stop at the top of the volcano and just a few meters away from him was the mouth with the hot lava in it. He dropped the sword and the crystal fell off of him and he held Maka close in his arms.

Her breathing was shallow and almost nonexistent to his horror. Her skin was white as his hair and her entire dress was soaked in her royal blood. His fingers flung to her neck and he sought for her pulse. It was difficult. He had to press into her neck to feel the irregular and weak pulse of her.

"Maka." He whimpered cupping her face as tears prickled his eyes. "Maka. Please, say something, _anything_."

"Soul…" She was barely audible. "I won't…" She inhaled deeply, her shaky hand reaching out for him. He quickly grabbed it and squeezed it. "I won't… make it…"

"No! You're going to be fine! You _got to be fine!_ We have to take care of our baby, of our baby girl. You can't give up now! You are so close Maka!" He was crying. Tears were rolling down his cheeks and he felt how his heart was breaking.

"You know as well as… I do… I'm a goner…"

His heart broke. It absolutely broke into pieces because he knew it was true. She had lost too much blood and if he left her side now to heat up the sword, she would be dead when he returned. He didn't want her to die, but there was nothing he could do to save her. There was absolutely nothing he could do to save her. All he could do was stay by her side.

"You can't die." He sobbed as his tears hit her cheeks. His hands smeared her blue blood on her cheeks. "You can't leave me! What am I supposed to do without you?! You are _my life!_"

"Our girl… is your life… Juliet… is your life… you got to save her… You can only save her…"

He cried out loudly and his hands were shaking. "No, no Maka. _We_ got to save her! Together!"

She shook her head, which was more of her head falling to the side. "I'm… done… for it… please… cut her out… you got… to save… Juliet."

"Maka―"

"Please!" A single tear escaped her left eye. "I don't… want her to die!"

How could he deny her? He could never deny her anything. He knew she was right. She was going to die and if the baby wasn't out of her body, their baby girl, Juliet would suffocate in her belly and he would lose every important person in his life.

He had to cut her womb open.

With shaky hands, he lowered her head on the ground and gripped his crystal sword. Tears poured down his face as he leaned down and planted one devastated kiss on her lips. He kissed her with every bit of passion he could muster, kissed her as gently and lovingly as he could, with no respond from her but the weak try at pucker of her lips. He pulled away and rested his forehead on hers. "I love you Maka. I love you with all of my heart and I swear I will never love anyone else than you. You stole my heart and I don't want it back. I am so incredibly happy I got to meet you and I will treasure every second I spent with you, ever kiss we shared and every time you looked me in the eyes and told me you loved me."

"I… love you too… Love Juliet… as much as you loved me… I know you will be fine… with her…"

He cried as he pulled away from her. He raised his shaky hands with the sword in his hands. "I love you so much and I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you." His sword sunk. Into her flesh and she cried out pitifully in pain. He cut her stomach open to the sound of her scream of pain before it turned nonexistent.

He knew she was gone. He knew he had lost her. She was gone forever.

He cried out loudly in pain and agony as he felt his perfect other half leave him alone in the world. He wanted to close his eyes and wish to wake up, wake up inside of the Gorgon Kingdom, knowing it was all a horrible dream and he was going to return to his love or waking up beside her and damned he would love her like never before.

But his reality had turned into a nightmare. The thing that couldn't happen had happened. His queen― his Maka was gone.

He wanted to close his eyes and look away, but he had to see where his hands dug inside of the love of his life. He pulled out her guts as he cried loudly, feeling the warmth of her blood and the flesh of her until he found her womb and cut it open. He found the baby and he pulled it out.

A girl. She was right. It was a girl― A Juliet like she had predicted.

But she was not like they had expected. No cries, no movement and no pulse.

In his hands he held the corpse of his baby.

He looked at her. His heart had stopped. The world froze all around him as he looked at the blood coated baby in his hands. The sound of the spiders shrieking was so far away from him even though they were so close to him. His focus was on the dead baby in his hands and he couldn't focus on anything else.

He had lost everything. He lost the love of his life, _he_ was the one who killed her. He cut her open in order to "save" their child, who was already dead. The best part of him, the _only_ good part of him was gone. Gone just like that because of a stupid spire.

"Maka!"

He snapped out.

The voice. The voice of the one who started everything. The one who had once been her guard. The one who would protect her from everything but ended up piercing her with a spire.

His blood instantly fired up, hotter than the lava inside of the volcano and hotter than the fire ball in the sky.

He lowered the baby on his love and wrapped her arms around the baby and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Rest in peace love." And he closed her eyes. He wouldn't want her to see what was going to come next.

Slowly he got up on his feet with the bloodstained sword of his.

"Maka! Maka!" The blue haired idiot screamed. The scream of spiders soon followed before the guard snuck through the crystal bars he had created. His eyes widen and he froze. His eyes locked on the two bodies behind him. "What the fuck did you do?!"

"I did?" Soul growled. "It was you who threw a fucking spire in her!" He yelled loudly in anger as he leaped toward the killer of his love and baby girl. "It was _you_ who stole the most precious girls in my life!" He swung his sword at the man and it cut off his hand from his wrist like butter.

Black*Star exclaimed loudly in pain as he sunk down to his knees, gripping the stub left of it. Red blood poured down into his armor like a fountain.

"You killed _Maka!_ You killed our Juliet! You killed both of them ruthlessly!" He stabbed his sword at his face. Black*Star dodge it just in time for not having it go right through his face. A large piece of his cheek was cut, leaving a large piece of flesh landing, exposing his gum and teeth.

Black*Star cried out again and grabbed his cheek. "It wasn't my fault! I tried to save her!" He cried out from between his grunts and moans of pain.

"Save her?! There was nothing she needed to be saved from!" He circled his sword and quickly dug it into his shoulder. The man cried out even louder in pain. Soul fed from his screams. He twisted the sword in his shoulder and enjoyed the loud screams of the man. He would bring justice for her death. He would kill the fucker and throw him into the deepest part of hell for killing something so innocent.

"There was!" he grunted out through clenched teeth. He could see it from the gap in his cheek. "You are the devil! You seduced her and used her for your own entertainment! You were the worst for her!"

He growled loudly. He retrieved his sword from his shoulder and swift it over his already cut arm, cutting it down to the elbow. The new piece of flesh fell down and joined his hand.

"I would never." Soul gritted out, kneeling closer to the screaming man beneath him. "She was my _everything!_" He let out a cry of his own. Tears of anguish, torment and heart-break rolled down his cheeks. He sobbed loudly. "She was the one who saved me."

The blue-haired man's eyes widen. "Eater―"

"Shut up!" His sword cut off the last bit of his left arm. Before the man could scream, crystal filled his mouth and bound it do the back of his head. It followed by another gripping his throat and shot him backwards toward the mouth of the volcano. His feet dangled in the air as he made strangling sounds. His blood dripped from his nonexistent arm and down into the lava a hundred feet below him.

The tears from the white-haired man never stopped. He let out the pain and sorrow the anger had masked as he strolled up toward the mouth of the volcano.

Their eyes locked. Black*Star's eyes were wide. Wide with fear and pain. He had seen those eyes in so many people he had killed. The samurai he killed. The Gorgon Sisters. Pleading him to spare their lives. He had not spared a single one, and he wasn't going to start now.

After all, this was the most disgusting man he had ever met. The monster who appeared to be a guard. He was a far worse demon than he was.

Anger made his blood start to boil and he bared his sharp teeth at him.

A cry.

It wasn't Black*Star. It wasn't him.

Slowly he turned on his heel, his eyes wandering back to the love of his life and at the baby on top who was crying at the top of her lungs.

It was Juliet who cried.

His sword hit the ground. He sprinted. He ran as fast as he could and skidded as he threw himself in front of them. He picked up the baby girl who wasn't still anymore. She was crying and shaking her small baby hands. Her skin was caked with Maka's blood. Her eyes cracked open and it blew him away. Green eyes stared back at him. The same green eyes of his love.

He was enchanted. Just like that.

He brought the baby close to him and he wailed. He cried along with his baby. She was alive. He hadn't lost everything. He still had a part of Maka. She was in their child. His lips planted a kiss on the baby's forehead to then kiss the forehead of his love.

Soul knew what he had to do.

He placed the baby on her mother and grabbed Black*Star's discarded sword as he brought Black*Star in by the mouth of the volcano. His feet hit ground again and the gag disappeared from his mouth. He gasped loudly for oxygen as his knees gave in.

He knew what Maka would want. With their baby alive, he knew he had to put his hatred for the man aside. It was his foolish anger who sent her to the grave. If he hadn't jumped into the battle, she would most likely be alive.

He had to correct his faults, not only for Maka, but for Juliet and for himself.

He had to start over.


	3. Epilogue

Summary: "He is a _killer!_ Don't you see what danger you put us in by inviting _him?!_ He is _the Soul Eater!"_

"Why did you choose this life? Why in the world would you want to kill people?"

"Why?" He asked. "Because I have this ability to protect myself. I'm blessed with this power to strike those who rise against me dead. I can get back at those who anger me and I can do everything those people did to hurt me. I can get my revenge on everybody in this cursed world."

Armour of pure crystal and a sword made of compacted crystals. He's Soul Eater, the infamous killing machine. You come in his way, and he will take your life.

**The Legend of the Crystal Kingdom Epilogue**

_Seven years later_

Green eyes peered from behind the bush. The cat cleaned her pale grey fur. The girl giggles as she moved the branches of leaves out of the way.

"Kitty!" She exclaimed, holding out her short arms at the creature.

The cat's pale eyes widen and immediately took off.

"Kitty!" The young girl groaned, quickly following after the cat on her short legs. "Kitty!" She groaned angrier, wanting the cat to return. "KITTY!" She hollered.

Up from the earth came a colorless crystal and the sharp end went right through the cat's body. The cat stilled. It didn't try to run away. It didn't even make a sound.

The young girl looked at the cat with horror. Her small hands covering her pink mouth. "Kitty..?" She carefully questioned.

"What have you done?!" Soul exclaimed, had seen his daughter disappeared within the royal garden.

The daughter spun on her tiny feet and faced her father. "N-nothing!" She quivered. Her hands shook and he saw tears pour up in her eyes. "I-Is Kitty going to be o-okay?"

His heart skipped a beat and he could almost see himself and the poor little cat _he_ had killed. He had to inhale to calm down his heart and opened his arms. The young girl fell a tear as she ran into her father's arms.

"The cat…" he gulped. "Will be gone for a while." He had to remind himself Juliet was nothing like himself. The moment might reflect his past, but she was _nothing_ like him. She reflect her mother perfectly in her personality and her eyes. She wouldn't follow in his footsteps. He wouldn't allow it.

"W-When will she come back?" She sobbed, squeezing her tiny arms around her father's neck.

"I don't know." He rubbed her fragile back. "We will have to wait and see." He picked her up and walked away, leaving the dead cat behind. He would have to come back to take care of that later.

He had feared it since the moment she was born. He had feared she would inherited his crystal ability. He was terrified of her becoming him. He didn't want her to take such a difficult turn in her life. He knew from the moment the king's men witnessed her blue blood roll down her finger to then crystalize, he knew she wasn't as lucky as he wanted her to be.

After the dreaded day on the volcano Arachnophobia, he had cauterized Black*Star's wounds and escaped the mountain. They travelled back to the Albarn Kingdom with Maka's body in a carriage. He couldn't leave her body behind on the volcano. He wanted her to have a proper funeral, which she got.

When they returned, the kingdom's hearts broke for the deceased queen, but Soul hadn't let his feelings burden him. He knew he would have plenty of time to mourn later. He and Black*Star had stormed inside of the castle and into the throne room. There, he confronted Death the Kid and the kingdom's wisest men. He demanded the throne, he _needed_ it. He needed it in order to fulfill his beloved's visions and thoughts about the perfect world. A world without violence.

He was the father of the queen's child. He proved it by drawing a drop of blood from Juliet's finger. The blue blood had shocked them to the core. She was the child of Maka Albarn, Black*Star had told the council of her pregnant belly and supported Soul throughout the whole thing. The only reason the council had agreed to give Soul the crown until Juliet turned eighteen was because he was the father. They wouldn't want the queen to look bad for having a baby with someone who wasn't her husband.

Death the Kid and Maka's marriage papers were destroyed and new marriage papers of Soul Eater and Maka Albarn's marriage was created. A new law was created and it was of never speak of Maka's infidelity.

Soul should've been happy. He got a marriage with the one he loved, but it was bittersweet. He was married to the love of his life, which was buried in the ground. He wished he could've shared the experience _with_ her.

He did as well as she could. He knew he couldn't be loved by the people like they loved Maka, but damned he tried. The first thing he did was to fire all of the guards. No one guarded the castle or the village. Only one. Which was him. He enforced the walls around the kingdom with crystal walls to keep out sinister men and if the kingdom would be under attack. He would talk to them, and if he couldn't talk them out of attacking, he would kill in order to protect the kingdom.

He knew, once Juliet turned eighteen and she would take over the throne, she would be the protector of Albarn kingdom. She would be the one who enforced the walls and kept the villagers safe. He had to prepare her, seven years had already gone by and with her ability awaken, he would have to teach her to control her power and use it in a positive fashion, not used for evil.

It wasn't what Maka wanted entirely, but that was the best he could offer her.

He really did try to make friends with the citizens, but he did not have a good reputation. With his background and with the kidnapping-the-queen issue still raw, it didn't make it easier. He offered dinner inside of the castle, but no one wanted to take a step inside of the castle. They were afraid he would hurt them or kill them. He repaired their broken homes with his crystals, but instead of thanks, he got people screaming at him to get away from them and their homes.

He was hated, and he was fine with it. They could hate him as much as they wanted, but when someone turned that hatred on Juliet, he was livid. He screamed and cursed his throat raw and he wanted to hurt them, but he knew he couldn't.

Up to this day, he was hated, only a handful of people saw the new him and most of them lived inside of the castle. One of them was Tsubaki, Black*star's wife. She was horrified with the condition he was in when they returned, and she feared Soul at the beginning. After Tsubaki and Black*Star got married a week after their arrival, he doesn't know what Black*Star did, but he managed to convince her he wasn't a bad guy. At least not now. Tsubaki helped him care for Juliet and taught him how to parent since he had absolutely no experience or even a clue how to care for a child.

He carried his sobbing daughter inside of the castle. He knew she knew the cat wouldn't return and with her powers maturing and awakening, he had to tell her what she had done and teach her the burden and discipline of having them. He knew the day would come, and he did not want to do it, but he had to. For his beloved and for her.

"Juliet, do you have any idea what it was that came up from the ground?" He whispered into her ear as he caressed her colorless long hair.

"N-no." she sobbed, her tiny frame shook.

"You know the statue of your mother? The one in the town's square?"

She nodded into his neck.

"It is the same material as of the statue." After he was crowned as king, he couldn't live without seeing his queen. He walked to the town square and in the middle of it and rose a large statue of the woman he loved. From his balcony inside of the castle, he saw the statue, reminding him of his greatest loss.

She pulled away, crooked her head at him with tears smudged on her cheeks. "What?"

Soul kneeled down on the ground and put her down on his lap. "You know the Bunny?"

The sadness in her eyes was gone in a millisecond and a large bright smile spread on her lips. "The Bunny? Is she going to come out?"

He nodded and cleaned her cheeks. There was a puff and a crystal white rabbit was in her lap. She squealed in joy and hugged the rabbit close to her. "Bunny! Bunny!"

"Juliet." He softly spoke as he caressed her white hair. "You can make your own bunny."

Her emerald eyes fluttered up to his. "I can?"

"Yeah. You have the same power as me, and with powers come certain responsibilities."

She groaned loudly and fell against his chest with the crystal bunny in her arms. "Daaaaddyyyyy~"

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around the tiny girl in his arms. "Responsibilities aren't the greatest, but it is something you have to take care of. This is a special kind of responsibility, and with special responsibilities comes with special rewards."

Her eyes lit up brighter than the sun. Only that light in her eyes he had seen in one person before and it made his heart break at the reality of not being able to see her again. "What kind of reward? More bunnies!" She asked hopefully.

He smirked wide. "Bunnies and apples dipped in caramel."

She shrieked in glee and shook her small hands. "Yay! Special responsibilities! Where is it! Where is it!"

"Come with me and I will show tell you all about it." They exited the forest and entered the castle. They turned into hallways and nodded with respect toward the maidens and chefs in the castle which they respectfully curtsied or bowed. A large wooden door came into view with large steel rings as handles. The door shrieked loudly when Soul pushed it open for them to enter. Juliet clutch his hand and sucked her thumb.

"Daddyyyy~" She wined. "It's scary~"

"Don't be scared." He squeezed her fragile hand gently. "We are going to visit your mother."

"Mommy?" Her eyebrow shot up.

He nodded. "Yes."

They headed through the dark room toward the only source of light from the large window. It fell on a podium with a large crystal glass covering a beautiful woman in a green dress and golden details. The same dress she wore the day their hearts lashed on to each other's and their bodies bonded. They walked up the stays up on the podium where he lifted Juliet up next to the glass cover.

Juliet inhaled loudly and her eyes widen. "Mommy?" She whispered.

"It is a statue. Just like on the town's square."

He had laid many hours on making this one, explored his abilities to make his loved one seem as real as possible. In the end, after weeks of sleepless nights, he was finished. He captured her pale and soft skin, the rich rosy lips of her and the golden strings of hair. The only thing he changed was replaced the wedding ring of the former king with his own ring he had made to her. This room was his favorite of all the rooms of the castle, he felt a little closer to his love. He loved to sit by and talk to her about Juliet, her villagers she loved so dearly and the kingdom she had sacrificed her own happiness by marrying a man she did not love. He always ended up crying. The ache in his chest would never go away. The part of him that still wished to wake up from a nightmare and discover his pregnant love lying next to him, unharmed. He wanted her, _needed_ her so badly, but he knew, when his time came, he would once again be together with the love of his life.

"Your mother and I had quite a history together." Soul started. "I wasn't exactly kind. I was naughty. A very naughty man." And he told her everything. About his past, about growing up with his ability and the hatred he felt. He told her everything about Maka and how she had been the one to save him, and he told her of the last moments of her life. Everything in a child appropriate fashion.

Juliet ended up crying. Crying for her mother she never got to know. She hugged the glass cover as tears stained it. Soul rubbed her back, forcing back his own tears. He wanted to cry but he knew he had to be strong for his daughter. "She loved you unconditionally. She would do everything for you and there is nothing more she would want than for you to grow up and love the kingdom she sacrificed so much for. And so do I. I want you to be happy and spread that joy and love you have and not sink in the water of hatred and anger like I did."

Juliet cried loudly, there seemed to be nothing to stop the pain that she felt. "MOMMY!" She cried out loudly as her tiny nails dug into the crystal.

"She will always be with you, she will always watch over you and love you from afar." Soul spoke softly, biting his lower lip. "Don't cry. It only upsets her seeing you so sad. It makes me sad too."

She slammed into his stomach, wrapping her tiny arms as well as she could around his stomach. "DADDY!" She cried loudly. "I miss mommy!"

He held her tightly. "I know Juliet." He lowered his head and pressed his lips onto her pale hair. "I miss her too."

And they sat there in the darkness of the room, in the light from the window, holding each other and being less lonely.


	4. Fall of the crystal founder

Because after playing _Wadanohara and the great blue sea_, I just couldn't leave this story like this. I had to make it up to Soul and Maka c: So this is just a bonus chapter to the series.

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><p><strong>Fall of the crystal founder<strong>

Nothing. He felt nothing. Soul's breathing was shallow and slow and his fingers were numb. His head was spinning and the white ceiling made his stomach stir, bile rising in his throat. Immediately he closed his eyes and the dizzy spell did not disappear.

What was going on? He had never felt this sick before. Maybe the moment his dear queen passed away, but never had he felt physically sick like this. His body shivers and sweat pearls appear on his forehead. The air is cool. Uncomfortable cool. Soul inhaled loudly and found comfort in the controlled darkness.

To his astonishment, the room seemed warmer. His shivers reduced until they slowly disappeared. He dared to crack his left eye open, met with the white ceiling, but his stomach did not stir with nausea. His eyes fully opened and that is when he realizes it was not just the white ceiling he saw. The whole room is white, he cannot see where the walls melds together. It's like he's under a white cloth with no ends what so ever.

Soul lifted first his index finger. The numbness was gone and he moves his other fingers carefully. No numbness. He heaved himself up in a sitting position. Soul's eyes almost bulged out of their socks when he noticed the smooth skin on his hands. His wrinkles were gone. His dark spots were gone.

His hands flung to his face and he was met with smooth skin, well, aside from the stub of his upcoming beard.

The dark red shirt did not cover his chest, instead he wore a white shirt and white pants, spotless and completely free from dirt.

He jumped up on his feet and noticed the strength in his legs. His body was nothing like the crumpled and weak old body of his. It was like his body went back in time to the peak of his h―

"Soul."

His eyes widened. He knew that voice all too well. The same voice he always heard whispering into his dream. Her giggles that he played in his mind when he looked at the statue of her. The same voice that turned his world upside down, changing him into someone better.

Slowly he turned on his bare feet as clean as his clothes. There she stood. The same white dress she wore on the day she died, clean from her blue blood. Her cheeks are not as pale and lifeless as she was on Arachnophobia. Her lips not blue, instead a rich and full pink and her eyes sparkling brighter than the stars in the night sky.

His mind could barely catch up with his body. He was moving and his body, to his joy and relief, collided with hers. Her warm, alive, body heated his up like the hot spring they met at. He melted into her touch when her arms tightly wrapped around him.

"There is no need for tears." her voice whispered into his ear, making him shiver.

He hadn't even noticed. His cheeks were wet and he could taste salt on his lips. "I missed you." A sob ripped his body. "You have no idea how I have longed for your touch, to simply hold you in my arms again and hear your voice." His body shook. For year, decades, he'd missed and longed for her. Physically he longed for her, mentally he _needed_ her and emotionally he carved for her, thirsted for her love. Her love was something he _needed_ to survive.

"I know Soul." He almost melted when her lips connected with his cheek. "I have watched over you and Juliet. You know I would never leave you like that." Her hand ran through his hair before she rubbed his back. "I'm very sorry I left like that. It was not easy for you to―"

"No," sob, "don't apologize." His hands trembled on her back. "I should've never started the fight. I should've just let you take care about it and talk him down, but instead I jumped at the opportunity to fight and I fucked everything up. You died because of my damned f―"

"No." Maka pulled away and cupped his cheeks. Tears blurred her eyes. "It was _our_ fault. The three of us could have acted differently. We cannot change the past so there is no time dwelling on it."

"But―"

"No buts." A smile stretched on her face as her tears broke free from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. "I'm so proud over how Juliet grew up. How wonderfully you raised her and how wonderful of a person she became."

"I didn't do anything." He rested his forehead against hers and squeezed her waist close to him. "She had good genes from her mother. Very good genes."

She giggled and gently wiped away his tears staining his cheeks. "I think a devoted, loving and active father outweighs good genes." She sniffled and her forehead moved to his shoulder. "How I wanted to be a part of her life."

"You are." Soul whispered into her ear and planted a kiss on her temple, simply relishing the moment with the love of his life. "Juliet has a statue of you on her nightstand and many times I have found her praying for you. She considers you a part of her life and she loves you dearly. But you already knew that, right?"

She nodded against his shoulder. "Yeah, it's just, it's hard watching you two interact and not being a part of that. Watching you two cry over me and me not being there to sooth your pain. It was tough."

"I think I know what you mean. Well, somewhat." He tightened his grip on her. "I always wanted you there, but I could never see you."

"Soul." She sniffled and his shoulder grew wet. "How come you never moved on from me? Was it just because of the marriage documents?"

"What?" His eyes widened with shock. "I could never move on from _you._ You were always constantly on my mind and my feelings never changed. I still love you just as much as I did when we were together if not more. Those feelings aren't something I could simply forget about and move on to someone else. I _never_ wanted or needed anybody else's love. All I need is _you._"

Sobs filled the white space around them and the love of his life trembled under his hands. "What will happen to Juliet now? What will happen to _us?_"

Soul blinked with confusion. "What? What do you mean?"

Maka pulled away from him and peered at him with wet eyes. "You do not know? Soul, you collapsed taking a walk with Juliet through the garden. You are dying."

Memories rushed through his head. How Juliet hooked her arm through his and they strolled through the garden together. His back buckled and his skin wrinkled. After Juliet had attended her royal meetings, she wanted to take him out to the garden to receive some fresh air. With his old body, it made it difficult for him to walk for a long period of time. He had disagreed due to the fact she was pregnant with her husband's baby.

His face crumpled with distaste at the thought of his daughter seeing him collapse and then died. He's hoped, prayed for him to die in his sleep so his daughter wouldn't witness a loved one die. He couldn't even imagine how she was feeling.

"Am I dead?" Soul stuttered.

Maka shook her head. "No, Juliet's screaming and trying her best at healing you. The ball is in your court, if you want to live, then you will live and if you want to die, you will die."

He could decide. Did he want to live, or did he want to move on and die to be with the love of his life? After decades of living with a broken heart and the absence of his soulmate, after living only for his daughter, there was nothing left for him to do.

"I don't want to live."

Her eyes widened to twice their size. "Soul, what about Juliet? Do you not want to see your grandchild?"

"Of course I do." His hand brush through her hair, a light smile playing on his lips. "But I think it is for the best for me to go now. Juliet does not need me to die twice and my body is old and weak. I think it is my time to let go now and I have you here. I can't let go of you now, not now when I have you again."

Her lower lip quivered and tears spilled on her cheeks. "You sure about this? Think about Juliet Soul." She removed herself from him and entwined their hands together. "Just, let me show you this.

The white space in front of them opened up and a round window to the outside world came into view.

Soul's old and scrawny body lied on the back with his mouth opened and his eyes closed. Juliet screamed at the top of her longs as tears came down like waterfalls. Her hands pressed against his left ribcage where his heart was located. She stopped to then connect their lips and blew air into his mouth. After blowing into his mouth, she continued to press her hands against his chest.

"Please dad!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, her husband stood right behind her with his hand on her shoulder, the other one covered his mouth. "Don't leave me! Not now! Not now! NOT NOW!"

Soul bit his lower lip as the round window closed and the white space returned to a whole. His heart tightened and guilt weight down on his chest. He knew all too well how she felt. He reacted that exact same way when Maka died, he almost killed Black*Star because he was so taken with his hurt and emotions.

"Can you really do this to Juliet? She is hurting, Soul."

A tear spilled over and he pulled Maka into a gentle hug. After he inhaled, he enjoyed her warm body and her tiny frame against his muscular one. "It would be selfish of me to return." He whispered into her ear. "She may be hurting now, but that will go away eventually, that is why I can't return there and deal her another pained death. She is a grown woman and a brilliant queen and she has a supportive and caring husband who can help her with the pain. There is nothing I can teach her. It is time for me to let go. I have someone else I need to attend to."

"Soul." She sobbed and clutched to him. "I do not want our daughter to hurt."

"And she will only hurt more if I return to die a week later. You know how old my body is, it is not going to hold me up much longer. I love you Maka and it is time to close my living chapter and start a new one with you. A life with you for eternality."

She broke down. Tears streamed down her face and completely soaked her shoulder. Sobs wrecked her body and her weight slowly crept up on him. He held her close and they sunk down to the invisible ground. He rubbed her back as she climbed onto his lap. They held each other, clinging to each other for dear life, or dear death in their case.

"It's unfair." She sobbed and inhaled loudly. "Why could we never be together? As a family. Why is it always you being ripped between me and Juliet?"

"Why?" He gulped and closed his eyes, forcing down his own tears. "Because life is unfair. We won't be separate forever. As much as I don't want to admit it or even think about it, Juliet won't live forever. We will all be together then."

Before he knew it, Maka's lips were over his and immediately he kissed her back. Strawberries and milk. Just as wonderful of a taste as ever. His tears broke free and they kissed each other with passion, love and sorrow.

For their joy in eternity in death was Juliet's painful life. For their happiness came a price, which no one wanted to pay, but both of them had to remember every life has a limit and everybody would die, including their darling daughter. Only then could their family be complete. Only in death.


End file.
